Labour has seized control of key Tory councils as Rishi Sunak braces himself for a local election drubbing.
Keir Starmer’s party gained Hartlepool, Rushmoor and Redditch directly from the Conservatives in results which boost the party’s hopes of winning an overall majority at the general election.
Labour also took control of Thurrock Council in Essex, which was Tory-run as recently as last year, and deprived the Conservatives of their majority on North East Lincolnshire Council.
In a further blow for the prime minister, early results showed the Tories are well on course to lose hundreds of council seats across England.
And Labour won the Blackpool South by-election as the Tory vote collapsed by 32%.
Prof John Curtice, the elections guru, said the by-election victory was “spectacular”.
“It was the third biggest swing from Conservative to Labour in post-war in postwar byelection history. And it’s the third biggest drop in the Conservative vote in postwar byelection history,” he told the BBC.
The Hartlepool result, which saw Labour gain eight seats and the Tories lose six, marks a major turnaround from 2021, when the Conservatives won the local parliamentary seat in a result which led to Starmer considering resigning as leader.
A party spokesperson said: “Winning back Hartlepool council is a groundbreaking moment after the disappointing results we saw here in 2021.
“Keir Starmer pledged to change the Labour Party after that result, and today’s win shows that this changed Labour Party is ready to deliver the change that communities like Hartlepool are crying out for.
“Making gains here shows that the party is on track to win a general election and is firmly back in the service of working people.”
Labour said winning majority control of Rushmoor Council in Hampshire for the first time ever was “a truly historic result”.
The Conservatives have run the local authority for the last 24 years.
A Labour spokesperson said: “This result demonstrates just how much the Labour Party has changed and people in Rushmoor know that only Labour can deliver the change they want to see.
“A Labour gain for Rushmoor is a result Rishi Sunak cannot ignore. It’s time for a general election.”
Thurrock in Essex is a key parliamentary battleground and a key target for Labour.
A party spokesperson said: “This is exactly the kind of place we need to be winning to gain a majority in a general election. The people of Thurrock have sent the Conservatives a message that they want change.”
However, there were signs that Labour’s stance on the war in Gaza was hitting the party’s support in Muslim communities.
That led to the party losing control of Oldham Council in Lancashire, and the Greens making major gains in Newcastle and South Tyneside.
Green Party co-leader Carla Denyer said: “These results show us reaching new areas of the country – and we are achieving that because our message of hope is being heard by new groups of voters.”